Pansy must send resignation letter to NA

Johannesburg - Electoral Commission of SA (IEC) chairwoman Pansy Tlakula should send her letter of resignation to the National Assembly, the home affairs portfolio committee said on Wednesday.

Committee chairman Buang Mashile said the committee had heard of Tlakula's resignation through the media, and was not officially informed.

“The portfolio committee... has noted media reports suggesting that the chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission... has resigned.

“The committee was in a process of considering the matter as recommended by the Electoral Court. In light of this, the committee hopes the letter of resignation will be sent to the Speaker of the National Assembly who will then direct the committee on the way forward.”

Tlakula announced her resignation on Tuesday and said she had submitted her letter of resignation to President Jacob Zuma.

The DA said on Wednesday that she did the right thing.

“She was heavily implicated in issues around the lease of a building for the IEC's head office, a matter in which the public protector found maladministration,” Democratic Alliance federal executive chairman James Selfe said in a statement.

It was a serious offence and marked the first time a member of a chapter nine institution had been found to have committed such misconduct, he said.

She was taken to court before the May 7 elections by several political parties who claimed her integrity had been compromised.

This followed an investigation by Public Protector Thuli Madonsela over the procurement of the IEC's Riverside Office Park building in Centurion, Pretoria.

Madonsela found that Tlakula had a relationship, possibly of a romantic nature, with then chairman of Parliament's finance portfolio committee Thaba Mufamadi.

Mufamadi was a shareholder in Abland, which was awarded the R320 million contract to lease the building.

A subsequent report by the National Treasury found the process was neither fair, transparent, nor cost-effective. It found Tlakula did not give guidance or formally inform various individuals what was expected of them in the process.

On June 18, Electoral Court Judge Lotter Wepener found Tlakula's misconduct warranted her removal from office.

Tlakula filed an application for leave to appeal the Electoral Court's ruling but it was dismissed by the Constitutional Court.

On July 1, Zuma granted Tlakula's request for special leave of absence until a final decision was made on her fitness to hold office.